


A Perennial Sort of Person

by CatKing_Catkin



Series: Mollymauk Lives Fest [3]
Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: Adopted Sibling Relationship, Ambiguous/Open Ending, Character Death Fix, Cuddling & Snuggling, Developing Relationship, Fix-It, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Friendship, Friendship/Love, Gen, Happy, Resurrection, Team Dynamics, Team as Family, Teasing, Transformation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-03
Updated: 2018-09-03
Packaged: 2019-07-06 06:32:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 848
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15880497
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CatKing_Catkin/pseuds/CatKing_Catkin
Summary: It's sheer chance that some business brings the Mighty Nein through Shady Creek Run again, on their way to another job. They think nothing of staying at Caduceus' temple while they're in the neighborhood, especially now that the damage to the Savalierwood has had time to heal.To their very great surprise, there's someone at the temple to welcome them. To their delight, it's a familiar face. Even though Molly isn't quite the same as they remember, he's overjoyed to see them and the feeling is absolutely mutual.Written for the Mollymauk Lives Fest, Day 3, Prompt “flowers”





	A Perennial Sort of Person

**Author's Note:**

> This is kind of a stealth crossover with The Adventure Zone, too.

 "Well," said Caduceus, with the faintest trace of surprise. "I can't say it's ever done _that_ before."

"Good?" asked Beau, in a small, strained voice. 

"Oh, so I have _you_  to thank you for this!" said Molly delightedly. He had his chin in his hands, grinning at Caduceus, and as he spoke he shook his head so that a few petals fell from his hair. 

It had been sheer chance that a job had taken the Mighty Nein back north, beyond the bounds of the Empire and past Shady Creek Run. Their eventual destination was further still, but while they were in the neighborhood, it had seemed like a natural decision to spend a night at Caduceus' temple. It was a place that was safe and calm, here in the wilds at the end of the world, especially now that they had cleared whatever disease had plagued the Savalierwood. 

But it was also a place that had been left entirely without a caretaker for months now, and so that had made it even more surprising and more than a little alarming when the Mighty Nein had arrived in the old graveyard to find that someone had very clearly been maintaining it.

The greater surprise had been finding out _who,_ and what had become of them since they'd last seen him.

"I like it!" Jester declared. "You are even more beautiful now, Molly."

"Thank you, dear! I admit, it took some getting used to, but now I'd have to say I agree." 

Just as Caduceus had first done during one of the darkest times in their life, Molly had welcomed them inside and made tea and now he sat tucked between Jester and Yasha like they weren't prepared to let go of him anytime soon. Beau couldn't help but stare, because here was _Molly_ , he sounded like Molly and acted like Molly and he even kind of looked like Molly except he was all made of wood and moss and sap and flowers. Even his tattoos had come back with him, stained into the wood of his new form. He'd even managed to retrieve his coat from his own grave.

"Now!" Molly declared, clapping his hands together. "Shady Creek is an absolutely terrible town for anything but rumors, so I have been hearing some _very_  interesting stories about what you lot have been getting up to without me, but nothing beats hearing a story straight from the horse's mouth. Do tell me just absolutely everything that's been going on."

"We missed you," said Nott, very quietly, staring at Molly like she still couldn't entirely believe he was real. Beau could relate.

"For starters," Fjord added. 

Molly paused in the act of refilling Jester's teacup to stare from Nott to Fjord and he looked just so ridiculously, damnably _surprised_  and Beau might have laughed at the ridiculousness of it all. Then she remembered, like a bolt from the blue - Molly, with a sword held to his throat, laughing as he was held hostage. _"And boy, I’ve got to tell you that you are really overestimating their fondness for me right now."_

Maybe that had been true once, but it had changed so subtly and easily that none of them had noticed, and it hadn't changed at all from there. But none of them had ever had the chance to _say it_ until too late. Now that Molly was here and looking like he was actually considering _not_ giving them shit for admitting any of that, Beau found that she absolutely couldn't admit any more. Not yet.

Maybe later.

Instead, she reached into her bag, pulled out a deck of cards, and slid them across the table. "Also, I stole your shitty cards. So there's that, too." 

She absolutely did not care how the glowing red embers that were Molly's eyes now brightened at the sight of the cards like they were old friends. "And did the fates themselves tell you that I would be returning to you one day soon?"

"Nah. I didn't need 'em to know that much." This time, when Beau grinned, it came easily. "I just had to know you, you enormous fucking  _asshole_." 

Molly burst into such a fit of giggles that he had to collapse against Yasha for support. "Oh," he declared, when  he had his breath back, and he looked around at them all like somehow _they_  were the marvel instead. "Oh, I've missed you all." 

"Caduceus," said Caleb, taking a deliberately calm sip of tea. "I see a bit of blood around your nose. I think you know how this happened. Why don't you enlighten us?"

"It's really just kind of a weird suspicion I have," said Caduceus, dabbing at the blood with a handkerchief. "But the Wildmother can be very grateful to those who do her proper service, and I was thinking..."

Beau didn't care about the details, only about the end result, but Caduceus' theorizing eventually led into all of them swapping stories well into the night, and curling up together in Caleb's fancy magic mansion once the sun went down.

**Author's Note:**

> Someone else brought up this particular idea on tumblr and I can't remember who but all I know is I suddenly could not stop thinking about it. All I'm saying is that I wouldn't mind in the slightest if the trend became reviving the gays as beautiful, beautiful dryads.


End file.
